Firefox can restore your open tabs and windows from your last session—even after a crash or restart. You can choose whether Firefox restores your session automatically when it starts or only when you request it.
If your session doesn’t restore as expected, this article includes troubleshooting tips for pinned tabs, private windows and update-related changes.
Table of Contents
When Firefox restores your session
When you manually select "Restore previous session"
You can manually restore your previous session from the Firefox menu if it does not restore automatically.
- Click the menu button Fx89menuButton on the right side of your toolbar.
- Click History.
- Select Restore Previous Session.
- Sessionrestore89
After a Firefox update
When Firefox updates, it often needs to restart. Tabs and windows should restore automatically after the update.
If they don’t:
- Click the menu Fx89menuButton button, click History and go to Recently Closed Windows or Recently Closed Tabs to recover them.
- Check if Session Restore is enabled (see Configure session restore below).
- firefoxupdate142fx70Linux-AboutFirefox-RestartFirefox 70 MacOS Restart to update
After restarting Firefox in Troubleshoot Mode
When you restart in Troubleshoot Mode to diagnose Firefox problems, your tabs and windows will be reopened.
If they don’t: Click the menu Fx89menuButton button, click History and go to Recently Closed Windows or Recently Closed Tabs to restore them manually.
After a crash or unexpected shutdown
If Firefox crashed or if your device shut down unexpectedly, it will usually attempt to restore your last session the next time you open it. You may see the Restore Session page:
- Select the windows or tabs you want to restore.
- Click Restore Session.
If Firefox crashes again during restore:
- Click Start New Session instead.
- Click the menu Fx89menuButton button, click History, and go to Recently Closed Windows or Recently Closed Tabs to recover your session manually.
- Fx97RestoreSession
When you've set Firefox to restore the previous session at startup
You can set Firefox to always show your windows and tabs from your previous session each time you start Firefox. To change your Firefox startup settings, see Configure session restore below.
Configure session restore
To set Firefox to restore your tabs and windows on startup:
- In the Menu bar at the top of the screen, click Firefox and select Settings (select Preferences on older macOS versions).Click the menu button Fx89menuButton and select Settings.
- Select the General panel.
- Below Startup, select Open previous windows and tabs
Fx94settings-Startup - Close the Settings page. Any changes you've made will automatically be saved.
Session Restore limitations and privacy
Session Restore works for regular tabs and windows. However, some exceptions apply:
| Feature | Will it be restored? |
|---|---|
| Pinned tabs | Yes |
| Private windows | No — by design |
| Login sessions | May keep you signed in |
Disable session restore after crashes (advanced)
If you don’t want Firefox to restore your session after crashes:
Only proceed if you are comfortable with advanced settings and understand the potential impacts.
- Type about:config in the address bar and press EnterReturn.
A warning page may appear. Click Accept the Risk and Continue to go to the about:config page. - In the Search preference name box at the top type browser.sessionstore.resume_from_crash.
- Click the Toggle Fx71aboutconfig-ToggleButton button next to browser.sessionstore.resume_from_crash to set it to false.
Troubleshooting
Session didn’t restore correctly
Ensure Firefox was closed properly
To properly close Firefox: Click the Firefox menu Fx89menuButton and select Exit.Click the Firefox menu at the top of the screen and select Quit Firefox.Click the Firefox menu Fx89menuButton and select Quit.
- If you close individual windows manually, only the last closed window's tabs will be restored.
Check history settings
- In the Menu bar at the top of the screen, click Firefox and select Settings (select Preferences on older macOS versions).Click the menu button Fx89menuButton and select Settings.
- Select the Privacy & Security panel.
- In the History section make sure that the Firefox will drop-down menu is set to either Remember history or Use custom settings for history.
- If Firefox will is set to Use custom settings for history, then make sure that Always use Private Browsing mode is not checked.
- If Firefox will is set to Use custom settings for history and Clear history when Firefox closes is checked, then click the Settings button and make sure that Browsing & download history is not checked.
- Close the Settings page. Any changes you've made will automatically be saved.
Recently closed tabs/windows are missing
If Firefox didn’t offer to restore your session:
- Go to History and click Recently Closed Windows or Recently Closed Tabs.
Use Ctrl + Shift + T (or Command + Shift + T on macOS) to reopen the last closed tab.
Tabs open to blank or home page
This could be caused by:
- A conflicting extension
- A change during an update
- Corrupt session data
Try:
- Disabling add-ons in Troubleshoot Mode
- Resetting Firefox settings (see this guide)
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